Six years in the making, the Noël Family Distillery sits in a stylishly renovated former power and light building on Veterans Boulevard along the Mississippi River in historic downtown Donaldsonville.
Opened in late May, the distillery was founded by Donaldsonville natives Chip and Natalie Noel, a father-daughter team who became interested in rum production and wanted to reinvest in their hometown.
The Noels invested close to $1 million to open the distillery, which sells private label rum, tequila and vodka, including an original pickle flavored vodka Natalie Noel developed.
The Noel’s business is part of a recent wave of development projects across downtown Donaldsonville. The town of less than 7,000 has seen some $30 million in new investment in the last three years.
Sleepy Donaldsonville is situated in the southeast corner of Ascension Parish on the west side of the Mississippi River, a far cry from its larger neighbor, Gonzales. Ascension Parish’s population has nearly doubled since 2000, but Donaldsonville’s has declined, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Still, since 2019, more investors are spotting opportunities to bring buildings back into commerce in Donaldsonville’s 27-block historic district, thanks to a focused effort by the city of Donaldsonville and the Downtown Development District that began with a master plan in 2019.
“What we tried to do is expand our toolbox for getting these projects done,” says Lee Melancon, director of community and economic development. “That meant looking at housing, the arts, preservation, attracting investors and making a point to create new partnerships.”
